The
May 25th, 1918 edition of the Toronto Daily Star has a full-page ad entitled
"A Future Assured" describing several of the businesses in New
Toronto. It has some sketch drawings of the businesses including The Reg.
N. Boxer Co. Ltd., Ritchie & Ramsay Ltd.,
Browns Copper & Brass Rolling Mills Ltd., Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. of
Canada Ltd., and Dupont Fabrikoid Co.

Goodyear
started in Canada
in 1910 with a plant in Bowmanville.During World War I, production expanded so rapidly that there was need
for an additional plant.Hence, the
Goodyear Tire plant was built in New Toronto in 1917 and was located between
9th and 13th streets, fronting Lakeshore. Water, necessary for the
manufacture of rubber products, plenty of labour, and excellent shipping facilities
predicated the choice of New Toronto as the site for a modern plant. (In fact,
before the pumping station was built, Goodyear pumped water to the plant
directly from LakeOntario).The new plant also housed the company’s head
office.It became known as the
“pneumatic tire plant” and manufactured tires for automobiles, trucks, logging
and farm vehicles, industrial tires, tubes and plastic films.

At first, capacity was set at 200
tires a day (an ample figure at that time).During World War II, capacity reached the 10,500 mark.In November 1927, Mr. George D. Scott,
assessor for the New Toronto Business Men's Association, touted that "Of
all the wallpaper manufactured in Canada, 50 per cent was manufactured at the
Boxer Company plant, while 80 per cent of the sheet brass and copper was made
at the Anaconda factory, and 50 per cent of the auto tires manufactured in
Canada were made at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company".
"C.H. Carlisle, president of the Goodyear Company, said his company was today
doing business with 87 foreign countries and they paid out three million in
their pay roll and one and a half million in freight". (Toronto Daily
Star, 1927/11/18). Photo credit:Goodyear Canada Inc.

"In
its heyday", writes Dick Baxter, "Goodyear had three shifts and as
many as 1300 employees. They had their own cafeteria, bowling alleys,
police force, newspaper (the Wingfoot clan) and their own baseball team.
Over the years, the company blimp visited and moored on the spacious grounds".
The spacious Goodyear field was used as an unofficial playground for schools
and the town.A full staff of gardeners
tended the gardens. Goodyear was know to be a great corporate citizen and even
made a large donation of a camp to the Boy Scouts, in memory of the Goodyear
employees killed in World War II.

The
following article in the Goodyear Wingfoot Clan from August 1926 provides a
perspective of Goodyear’s participation in community events:(Reproduced with permission from Goodyear Canada):

“Goodyear Gets First
in their Class

New Toronto
merchants and business men held a monster parade and Community Day on Aug. 11th,
which was one of the best affairs of this sort ever held on Lake Shore Road.

Practically ever merchant and factory in the town had a float
or car in the parade and every one of the floats was original and instructive.

Goodyear’s float won first prize for industrial floats,
which was a silver cup donated by the Business men’s Association.Anaconda American Brass won the Sweepstake
cup donated by the Goodyear for the best local float.”

During
World War II, employment at the Goodyear plant doubled to 2,800 as the demand
for war production rose to unprecedented levels.In addition to the production of tires, 75%
of which were used on military equipment, the plant also produced life rafts,
bulletproof aircraft fuel tanks, de-icing equipment and many other essential
products.

Hundreds
of Goodyear employees joined Canada’s
military forces during the wartime period.Forty-seven were killed in action including Flight Lieutenant David E.
Hornell, an employee in the chemical department at the Goodyear plant.Hornell was posthumously awarded the first
Victoria Cross to be won by a member of the Royal Canadian Air Force.

The
Goodyear employees who paid the supreme sacrifice during both wars continue to
be remembered through the Goodyear Remembrance Trophy, which is awarded
annually at Toronto’s
Warriors’ Day Parade.

Goodyear Plant, 1967 (Photo Credits: Goodyear Canada Inc)

A
lot is to be said for the employee culture at Goodyear.Employees were encouraged to participate in
community events, and most employees were local residents.In fact, Goodyear established the “Spirit
Award” program in 1966 to recognize employees who best illustrate what “spirit”
is all about – the spirit of striving for perfection – of satisfaction in a job
well done – and working within and for one’s community.Several New Toronto employees won this award
over the years, including Barry Fitzpatrick,
who worked for Goodyear right up to his passing on in December 2006.(Barry was very helpful in putting together
this web page).Many employees had a
long tenure at Goodyear.They were, and
are, loyal, dedicated employees and thus were often dubbed as
“Goodyearites”.Several employees even
today have over 40 years seniority.

The
Lakeshore plant closed on May 31, 1987 and moved north to 450 Kipling Avenue.

In
1988, the Daniels group purchased the site for a residential development of
apartment buildings.Kleinfeldt Consultants managed the
demolition project.

In
1992, construction was started on 7 new co-operative housing projects.The co-ops are built around a quadrangle, the
middle of which is a park at Tenth
Street and Coin Street.Several co-op buildings are named after
various people who played an important part in the community:

In
the picture to the left, Barsa Kelly Co-op is in the middle.Daniels townhouses are to the right.Robert Cooke/Lakeshore Gardens— which share
the same building—are on the left.(Photo
Credit: John McCuaig)

The
co-op projects were particularly daring because they were built on reclaimed
brownfield land contaminated by chlorinated chemicals used in the manufacture
of Goodyear Tires and Anaconda Brass from the 1920’s to 1989, when the plants
closed.Mayor David Miller said, “The
lands are also essential for “smart growth” policies promoted in the official
plan, which would combat urban sprawl by diverting new GTA residents into the
central city”.Now, in 2004, a townhouse
condominium project is almost completed on the Lakeshore front of the site.

Below are a couple of pictures of some of the (almost) completed
townhouse construction on the Lakeshore front in 2005.